FRIENDS, NEIGHBORS, CITY OF BELLAIRE LEADERS AND RESCUE PARTNERS. WE NEED YOU TO LISTEN, NOW, AND NOT LATER. It is with immense sadness and absolute frustration that we are announcing the untimely and avoidable DEATH of our sweet McFlurry, a 1.5 year old black shepherd who was residing at the Bellaire Pound at the time of his death today, August 26th, 2021. Please help us demand that the City of Bellaire build a new pound (not in the 5-10 year “plan”), and conduct IMMEDIATE facility repairs to ensure the safety and well-being of all dogs housed in the Bellaire Pound. This includes both strays and residents’ dogs who have gotten loose!

He was brought into the Bellaire Pound by the Bellaire Police Department as a stray on August 3rd. We, Friends of the Bellaire Pound (2 unpaid volunteers), have been working day and night since that date to find a rescue group to accept McFlurry. And, after lots of photographing, videos, temperament testing, desperate late-night emails, FOBP picking up additional medication from the vet for him this week, WE DID IT. We were thrilled to be picking McFlurry up THIS SUNDAY TO LEAVE THE POUND AND HEAD TO MASSACHUSETTS FOR HIS NEW LIFE, with a rescue group we had secured for him up north. They were so excited for his arrival. Which, will never happen, because McFlurry died a gruesome death at the pound this morning.

For those of you that don’t know, the City of Bellaire Pound is at 4337 Edith Street. Please drive by. The two signs hanging on the gate that actually make you realize it’s a pound…we paid for those and had them made in 2019. It sits at the dead end of an alley, attached to the police impound lot. On the OPPOSITE side of the freeway from the Bellaire Police Department, who operate the pound with funding provided by the City of Bellaire. Yes, it floods. Yes, it is outdoors. No, there is no air conditioning or heat, and the dogs lay on concrete floors unless we (FOBP) buy dog beds.

FOBP is now a 501c3 non-profit, not officially part of the City of Bellaire, which provides us no funding. Katie has been assisting with placement of Bellaire Pound dogs into rescue groups and homes since summer 2017, and Rebecca joined forces in January 2019. Pound intakes have nearly doubled in 2021. This year alone, FOBP has placed 62 dogs in rescue groups, foster homes or adopted homes! This figure does not even include YOUR dogs…those that got out of your home and were brought to the pound while you, the owners, were located and called to come pick them up. Would you like your dog to die in the pound before you get there in time? Have a Chihuahua? That's too bad, the City still hasn't made one of the pins secure enough for small dogs as we asked. They can squeeze through the pin fencing. 

We have stayed mum on internal squabbles with the City, (whom we LOVE-lookin- at you specifically BPD, but yes, this post will make very upset), in order to not jeopardize our involvement from this process, which would only be detrimental for the dogs who otherwise have NO means by which to leave the pound. We have also not mentioned publicly that we are not currently allowed to step foot on pound property, at all. Not since the spring of this year. Even though, we have been doing this volunteer work for YEARS. We have been told that until we have a Memorandum of Understanding signed with the City to become official partners, we are no longer allowed to step food on pound property even WITH an officer or city escort. While we have a negotiated contract, this has not been signed yet, as the City also insisted FOBP obtain and pay for general liability insurance that also named the City as an additional insured party. As you can imagine, this specialized insurance has thus far been impossible for us to secure, as we work alongside both police officers and stray dogs…anyone want to insure us?

City ordinances now allow for euthanization of dogs after 30 days, and we have been told face to face that this would indeed be a utilized option for healthy, adoptable dogs in order to make space if needed. We have held three meetings in 2021 with City administration and BPD, beginning in mid-January. In the meantime, we have pleaded the need for an immediate new pound facility or renovation of the existing facility, or both. We have been told this is a “long process” and is in the “five-year plan.” We were so happy that the City replaced the exterior property fencing this spring, as dogs were escaping, multiple times and going back on the street. The City did NOT however, replace the interior pin fencing. And now McFlurry is dead.

The City of Bellaire has a duty and responsibility to care for and provide adequate, safe housing for dogs in its custody. The City has FAILED. And we won’t stand for it any longer. Will our post ruffle feathers? Yes. Will it get us fully cut off from saving the Bellaire Pound dogs? We KNOW our City leaders are better than that. McFlurry was in the middle pin (#3). He was found dead covered in blood in pin #1 this morning. With exterior pin gates locked. He therefore climbed over two interior chain-link pin dividers and was found deceased with blood covering the pin floor. There were no other dogs being held at the Bellaire Pound at the time of this incident. All other pins were vacant.

Mind you, he has been in his concrete pin since August 3rd. The pound is not manned full time. Dogs only receive human interaction when the ACO goes over there. On the weekends, only once in the morning for a feeding, then officers depart on their patrol duties. We can’t blame him for wanting to get OUT. So no, it’s not the dog’s fault. It is the fault of the CITY OF BELLAIRE. Email your Mayor, Interim City Manager Cary, police leaders, and city council members below, and let them know your thoughts on the current situation and today’s incident. Please also sign our Change.org petition for a new pound facility and immediate existing pound repairs to make this pound a safe environment for YOUR loose dogs and the City’s homeless dogs while in the custody of the City of Bellaire. 

NOTE: NO NEED TO DONATE FURTHER ON THE CHANGE.ORG PLATFORM. FOBP DOES NOT RECEIVE ANY OF THESE CONTRIBUTIONS. THEY GO TO THE WEBSITE HOST FOR MARKETING PURPOSES. TO SUPPORT FOBP FINANCIALLY, PLEASE SEE OUR GOFUNDME: gofundme.com/f/fobpgeneralfund

Lovingly, Friends of the Bellaire Pound

Onesimo Lopez, Chief of Police: olopez@bellairepolice.com

Tony Hefferin, Police Captain - Patrol Division: thefferin@bellairepolice.com    

Andrew Friedberg, Mayor: afriedberg@bellairetx.gov

Brant Gary, Interim City Manager: bgary@bellairetx.gov

Neil Verma, Council Member - Position 1: nverma@bellairetx.gov

Catherine Lewis, Council Member - Position 2: clewis@bellairetx.gov

Gus Pappas, Council Member - Position 3 and Mayor Pro Tem: gpappas@bellairetx.gov

Nathan Wesely, Council Member - Position 4: nwesely@bellairetx.gov

Michael Fife, Council Member - Position 5: mfife@bellairetx.gov

Jim Hotze, Council Member - Position 6: jhotze@bellairetx.gov 

Friends of the Bellaire Pound: friendsofbellairepound@gmail.com